Chagos News Issue

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Chagos News Issue Chagos News The Periodical Newsletter of the Chagos Conservation Trust and Chagos Conservation Trust US No 57 December 2020 ISSN 2046 7222 © Jon Slayer Contents © Jon Slayer Editorial Dr Natasha Gibson, CCT Chair By now, I’m sure all of you have watched oceans and coasts means reducing the Editorial P3 David Attenborough’s moving testament pressure on those ecosystems so they can to environmental change and habitat recover, both naturally and by re-seeding or destruction in his reflections on a Life transplanting key species”. on our Planet. “Scientist David”, as my The Story of the Lost Brain Coral P4 young son calls him, not only documented The science of biodiversity monitoring has the natural world in stunning detail but recently stepped up a gear with a new implored all of us to care for it through monitoring tool: environmental DNA analysis. News in brief P10 small actions and large efforts. This is described in more detail on P16 by the And so, in the spirit of this citizen science, I’ve scientists of NatureMetrics, who we hope to stepped up to the challenge of chairing CCT in partner with on the Chagos Archipelago, but in A Decade in Review P12 this exciting time as it implements the Healthy basic terms the tool picks up traces of animals Islands, Health Reefs programme. and plants from water, sediment, or soil. I hope that my extensive experience in This vastly increases the ability to determine Next Steps Towards a Rewilded P14 formulating and leading rehabilitation, what species are present in an area, to detect biodiversity, clean energy, and sustainability rare and elusive organisms, and is more cost Archipelago programmes will benefit the Trust and effective as it relies on sample collection its ambitions. rather than direct observation of numbers. Next year will be an important milestone year These samples can be collected by anyone New Tools for Monitoring Biodiversity P16 for CCT with the launch of Healthy Islands, as it is a straightforward process, which is Healthy Reefs. a bonus for CCT as we can ask any visiting scientific expedition, or even personnel based This is an ambitious 10-year programme to on Diego Garcia, to take these on our behalf. rewild the Chagos Archipelago, and is our contribution to the UN Decade on Ecosystem Thank you again for your continued interest Restoration that aims to prevent, halt and and support, especially through a difficult reverse the degradation of ecosystems on year due to the global pandemic, and all of every continent and in every ocean. us here at CCT look forward to updating you next year on the progress of Healthy Islands, Our programme aims to eradicate invasive Healthy Reefs. species and allow the reintroduction of seabirds and native vegetation, and so supports the UN’s statement that “restoring Wishing you a safe and happy 2021! © Jon Slayer Cover image: Chagos brain coral Ctenella chagius © Amelia Rose/University of Oxford 2 3 Professor Charles Sheppard, a wonderful On the third day’s sail, the vessel arrived at Ile character known to many at CCT and in my Diamant to anchor for a day or two, whilst we romantic mind, a passionate marine scientist used the inflatable boats to survey the reefs straight out of the rumpled pages of my copy of the islands nearby. At the seaward sites of of The Lost World. Ile de la Passe and Ile Diamant, I continued to search for and sample the abundant Acropora As the warm winds tugged at our hair (well, and Porites species which form the focus of certainly mine, at any rate), Charles was our research into reef health at Oxford, whilst regaling me with glorious and nostalgic always keeping half an eye out for Ctenella. chronicles of his time diving in the Chagos Archipelago in the 1970s, and the tragic The occasional surge of hope was more demise of one of its most iconic denizens, often than not a false one, colonies of similar- the Chagos brain coral (Ctenella chagius), looking brain corals Goniastrea and Leptoria Figure 1 © Amelia Rose/University of Oxford Figure 1 © an endemic to this region of the world. easy to mistake at depth. That afternoon, buffeted by a slight swell, we skipped As he eloquently described in his article across the waves to anchor just off Moresby for CCT several years ago (‘The Chagos Island, named after the eighteenth century brain coral Ctenella chagius: falling into cartographer who surveyed these islands. the red’; Chagos News, No. 52 July 2018), The Story of the this beautiful hemispherical coral (Figure 1) The site comprised a wide terrace at six was once one of the most common in the metres depth, sloping down to 11 metres and Lost Brain Coral archipelago. then dropping off–it was a wonderful place, Dr Bryan Wilson, Department of Zoology, and with hindsight, one of my favourite on However, recent warming events in the Indian that expedition, with high coral cover and University of Oxford Ocean have disproportionately decimated diversity. And yet also a challenging dive, its once abundant populations, such that the subsurface current increasing steadily on a previous expedition to BIOT in 2017, throughout the hour underwater. Employing As a child, I was entranced by the world and conserve the species for posterity not a single live colony was found and there my usual survey tactic of heading upcurrent to fantastical fictional tales of Conan Doyle’s and eventual reintroduction back into its were fears that it had become extinct. Upon begin and then drift-diving back to the anchor, The Lost World, and later, by its real-life jungle home. their return to the archipelago the following my research associate (Amelia Rose) and I (and admittedly slightly less exotic but year however, a small number of diminished finned across the reef looking for corals to nonetheless enthralling) counterpart, the Despite it being the 1980s, those dreams extant living fragments were discovered in the sample and tag. telling of Marjorie Courtney-Latimer’s always seemed to be illuminated by Victorian northern atolls of Salomon and Peros Banhos, rediscovery of the long thought extinct flash photography, possibly in tribute to the and with it, the chance that the species was And within the first ten minutes, we spotted coelacanth, amongst a rotting waste tall tales of that time, who knows. Of course, not lost to science after all. our first glimpse of the enigmatic Ctenella, pile of landed fish on the docks of East that was some decades ago and whilst my albeit a very pale and sorry-looking fragment, After hearing this and forever being the London, South Africa in 1938. dreams have become slightly jaded by the a small surviving part of what was once a realisation of the hundreds of extinctions that optimist, I had on something of a whim much larger colony (Figure 2) and likely one In my frequent young flights of fancy, I often have happened since my childhood, I have included a permit for Ctenella when applying of the specimens that Charles had spotted the imagined myself some great explorer of old, always held on to that same bookwormish to the BIOT Administration to sample for a year before. Six more similarly sorry-looking pushing through dense undergrowth into a fantasy. And then, several decades later, I number of other more commonly-occurring findings followed and I couldn’t help but be jungle clearing, only to see the merest flash finally took that flight of fancy... coral species, on the off chance (nay, the slightly underwhelmed–and terribly sad. of something disappearing into the thicket–the inspired hope!) that I would stumble upon one striped tail of a thylacine, the flecked breast Early in April 2019 and having only just joined on my upcoming dives. The photos Charles had showed me were of a Mauritius kestrel, or possibly even the the Bertarelli Program in Marine Science of pink-hued and beachball-sized giant As luck would have it, our expedition began comedically portly rump of a dodo. (BPMS) several months before, I found underwater brains and these fragments myself on their annual expedition to the in the south-west corner of Peros Banhos were mere shadows of those. Still, where I And then the furious chase that followed British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), aboard Atoll, surveying Ile du Coin, and as we sailed could, I tagged the colonies and gently took (possibly more of a clumsy lunge in the case the Patrol Vessel Grampian Frontier, forcing steadily northwards and clockwise in the thumbnail-sized tissue samples for which of the dodo). The capture! And the return its way through an unseasonable Indian coming days, my anticipation to dive the I’d so optimistically applied for a permit home a hero, to share my discovery with the Ocean surge and chatting up on deck with northern islands of the atoll grew. those months before, in the hope that some 4 5 contribution to the paucity of knowledge fortune, I was lucky enough to be awarded concerning this little coral could be made. a global research award to do just that by QIAGEN, one of the world’s leading The six or seven weeks that followed our biotechnology companies. And as I write this, return to the UK were nervous ones–far too I have received the first results back, and am many times in my career have samples gone currently delving into the first ever genome missing or spoiled during their inexorable data for this coral, hoping that the secrets of progress home around the globe–the its enigmatic and tenuous existence might sensation heightened by the thoughts that finally be revealed.
Recommended publications
  • Birds of the British Indian Ocean Territory, Chagos Archipelago, Central Indian Ocean Peter Carr
    CARR: Birds of Chagos 57 Birds of the British Indian Ocean Territory, Chagos Archipelago, central Indian Ocean Peter Carr Carr, P., 2015. Birds of the British Indian Ocean Territory, Chagos Archipelago, central Indian Ocean. Indian BIRDS 10 (3&4): 57–70. Peter Carr, 80 Links Way, Beckenham, Kent, England, UK, BR3 3DQ. E-mail: [email protected]. Manuscript received on 02 June 2015. Introduction from three directions, the east, north and west and seabird The Chagos Archipelago lies at the end of the Chagos-Laccadive migrants from four, the north and south and dispersing east and Ridge and is some 500km due South of the Maldives archipelago. west along the equatorial counter current systems.” Observations It is the final termini for migrating organisms heading South in post-1971 have proven that Bourne’s words were prophetic; the central Indian Ocean. It is made up of five islanded atolls landbird and seabird vagrants and migrants are an exciting aspect centred upon the Great Chagos Bank, the largest atoll structure of birding in the Chagos. The vast majority of migratory species in the world. The climate is tropical oceanic, hot and humid yet are of northern hemisphere origin (though there is evidence moderated by trade winds. Mean monthly temperatures vary that a limited number of vagrants are from the east and west) from a maximum of 30.75°C in March to a minimum of 28.03°C and are generally present in the archipelago from September in August. The northern atolls of the archipelago are the wettest through to March. As more ornithological research is conducted in the Indian Ocean (Stoddart & Taylor 1971).
    [Show full text]
  • Status of Alcyonacean Corals Along Tuticorin Coast of Gulf of Mannar, Southeastern India
    Indian Journal of Geo-Marine Sciences Vol. 43(4), April 2014, pp. 666-675 Status of Alcyonacean corals along Tuticorin coast of Gulf of Mannar, Southeastern India S. Rajesh, K. Diraviya Raj, G. Mathews, T. Sivaramakrishnan & J.K. Patterson Edward Suganthi Devadason Marine Research Institute 44-Beach Road, Tuticorin – 628 001, Tamil Nadu, India [E-mail: [email protected]] Received 28 November 2012; revised 7 December 2012 In this study, the assessment of alcyonaceans was conducted in Tuticorin coast of the Gulf of Mannar during the period between 2010 and 2012 in 5 locations; Vaan, Koswari, Kariyachalli and Vilanguchalli islands and mainland Punnakayal patch reef. Average alcyonacean coral cover in Tuticorin coast was 6.76% during 2011-12 which was 5.61% during 2010- 2011. Percentage cover of alcyonacean corals increased in all the study locations; Kariyachalli 12.04 to 13.96%; Vilanguchalli 8.94 to 10.23%; Koswari 1.6 to 3.69; Vaan 0.53 to 0.72; mainland Punnakayal patch reef 4.95 to 5.21% was documented. In total, 15 species from 7 genera were recorded during the study period. Though anthropogenic threats in Tuticorin coast are comparatively high, the abundance of alcyonacean corals has increased considerably showing their resilience and adaptability. [Keywords: Alcyonacean corals, Status, Diversity, Tuticorin, Gulf of Mannar] Introduction experience all the natural and anthropogenic threats. Alcyonacean corals (soft corals and gorgonians) Reef ecosystems of Gulf of Mannar are heavily are modular cnidarians composed of polyps that stressed due to various human induced threats like always have eight tentacles and are oftentimes destructive and over fishing practices, coral mining, connected by vessels classified under subclass domestic and industrial pollution, seaweed and other Octocorallia while hard corals have six tentacles resource collection in reef areas and invasion of (which are hexa corals).
    [Show full text]
  • Checklist of Fish and Invertebrates Listed in the CITES Appendices
    JOINTS NATURE \=^ CONSERVATION COMMITTEE Checklist of fish and mvertebrates Usted in the CITES appendices JNCC REPORT (SSN0963-«OStl JOINT NATURE CONSERVATION COMMITTEE Report distribution Report Number: No. 238 Contract Number/JNCC project number: F7 1-12-332 Date received: 9 June 1995 Report tide: Checklist of fish and invertebrates listed in the CITES appendices Contract tide: Revised Checklists of CITES species database Contractor: World Conservation Monitoring Centre 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge, CB3 ODL Comments: A further fish and invertebrate edition in the Checklist series begun by NCC in 1979, revised and brought up to date with current CITES listings Restrictions: Distribution: JNCC report collection 2 copies Nature Conservancy Council for England, HQ, Library 1 copy Scottish Natural Heritage, HQ, Library 1 copy Countryside Council for Wales, HQ, Library 1 copy A T Smail, Copyright Libraries Agent, 100 Euston Road, London, NWl 2HQ 5 copies British Library, Legal Deposit Office, Boston Spa, Wetherby, West Yorkshire, LS23 7BQ 1 copy Chadwick-Healey Ltd, Cambridge Place, Cambridge, CB2 INR 1 copy BIOSIS UK, Garforth House, 54 Michlegate, York, YOl ILF 1 copy CITES Management and Scientific Authorities of EC Member States total 30 copies CITES Authorities, UK Dependencies total 13 copies CITES Secretariat 5 copies CITES Animals Committee chairman 1 copy European Commission DG Xl/D/2 1 copy World Conservation Monitoring Centre 20 copies TRAFFIC International 5 copies Animal Quarantine Station, Heathrow 1 copy Department of the Environment (GWD) 5 copies Foreign & Commonwealth Office (ESED) 1 copy HM Customs & Excise 3 copies M Bradley Taylor (ACPO) 1 copy ^\(\\ Joint Nature Conservation Committee Report No.
    [Show full text]
  • Reef Encounter Reef Encounter
    Volume 30, No. 2 September 2015 Number 42 REEF ENCOUNTER REEF ENCOUNTER United Nations Climate Change Conference Education about Reefs and Climate Change Climate Change: Reef Fish Ecology, Genetic Diversity and Coral Disease Society Honors and Referendum Digital Underwater Cameras Review The News Journal of the International Society for Reef Studies ISSN 0225-27987 REEF ENCOUNTER The News Journal of the International Society for Reef Studies ISRS Information REEF ENCOUNTER Reef Encounter is the magazine style news journal of the International Society for Reef Studies. It was first published in 1983. Following a short break in production it was re-launched in electronic (pdf) form. Contributions are welcome, especially from members. Please submit items directly to the relevant editor (see the back cover for author’s instructions). Coordinating Editor Rupert Ormond (email: [email protected]) Deputy Editor Caroline Rogers (email: [email protected]) Editor Reef Perspectives (Scientific Opinions) Rupert Ormond (email: [email protected]) Editor Reef Currents (General Articles) Caroline Rogers (email: [email protected]) Editors Reef Edge (Scientific Letters) Dennis Hubbard (email: [email protected]) Alastair Harborne (email: [email protected]) Edwin Hernandez-Delgado (email: [email protected]) Nicolas Pascal (email: [email protected]) Editor News & Announcements Sue Wells (email: [email protected]) Editor Book & Product Reviews Walt Jaap (email: [email protected]) INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR REEF STUDIES The International Society for Reef Studies was founded in 1980 at a meeting in Cambridge, UK. Its aim under the constitution is to promote, for the benefit of the public, the production and dissemination of scientific knowledge and understanding concerning coral reefs, both living and fossil.
    [Show full text]
  • Coral Bleaching Impacts from Back-To-Back 2015–2016 Thermal Anomalies in the Remote Central Indian Ocean
    Coral Reefs (2019) 38:605–618 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-019-01821-9 REPORT Coral bleaching impacts from back-to-back 2015–2016 thermal anomalies in the remote central Indian Ocean 1,2,5 3,4,5 1 Catherine E. I. Head • Daniel T. I. Bayley • Gwilym Rowlands • 6 7 1 5 Ronan C. Roche • David M. Tickler • Alex D. Rogers • Heather Koldewey • 6 1,8 John R. Turner • Dominic A. Andradi-Brown Received: 28 September 2018 / Accepted: 20 May 2019 / Published online: 12 July 2019 Ó The Author(s) 2019 Abstract Studying scleractinian coral bleaching and becoming the dominant coral genus post-bleaching because recovery dynamics in remote, isolated reef systems offers of an 86% decline in Acropora from 14 to 2% cover. an opportunity to examine impacts of global reef stressors Spatial heterogeneity in Acropora mortality across the in the absence of local human threats. Reefs in the Chagos Archipelago was significantly negatively correlated with Archipelago, central Indian Ocean, suffered severe variation in DHWs and with chlorophyll-a concentrations. bleaching and mortality in 2015 following a 7.5 maximum In 2016, a 17.6 maximum DHWs thermal anomaly caused degree heating weeks (DHWs) thermal anomaly, causing a further damage, with 68% of remaining corals bleaching in 60% coral cover decrease from 30% cover in 2012 to 12% May 2016, and coral cover further declining by 29% at in April 2016. Mortality was taxon specific, with Porites Peros Banhos Atoll (northern Chagos Archipelago) from 14% in March 2016 to 10% in April 2017. We therefore document back-to-back coral bleaching and mortality Topic Editor: Morgan S.
    [Show full text]
  • Biodiversity: the UK Overseas Territories. Peterborough, Joint Nature Conservation Committee
    Biodiversity: the UK Overseas Territories Compiled by S. Oldfield Edited by D. Procter and L.V. Fleming ISBN: 1 86107 502 2 © Copyright Joint Nature Conservation Committee 1999 Illustrations and layout by Barry Larking Cover design Tracey Weeks Printed by CLE Citation. Procter, D., & Fleming, L.V., eds. 1999. Biodiversity: the UK Overseas Territories. Peterborough, Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Disclaimer: reference to legislation and convention texts in this document are correct to the best of our knowledge but must not be taken to infer definitive legal obligation. Cover photographs Front cover: Top right: Southern rockhopper penguin Eudyptes chrysocome chrysocome (Richard White/JNCC). The world’s largest concentrations of southern rockhopper penguin are found on the Falkland Islands. Centre left: Down Rope, Pitcairn Island, South Pacific (Deborah Procter/JNCC). The introduced rat population of Pitcairn Island has successfully been eradicated in a programme funded by the UK Government. Centre right: Male Anegada rock iguana Cyclura pinguis (Glen Gerber/FFI). The Anegada rock iguana has been the subject of a successful breeding and re-introduction programme funded by FCO and FFI in collaboration with the National Parks Trust of the British Virgin Islands. Back cover: Black-browed albatross Diomedea melanophris (Richard White/JNCC). Of the global breeding population of black-browed albatross, 80 % is found on the Falkland Islands and 10% on South Georgia. Background image on front and back cover: Shoal of fish (Charles Sheppard/Warwick
    [Show full text]
  • Coral Species ID
    Coral Species ID Colony shape (branching, mound, plates, column, crust, etc) Colony surface (bumpy, smooth, ridges) Polyp/Corallite Size (small, big) Polyp/Corallite shape (round/elliptical, irregular, y- shaped, „ innies vs outies‟ ridge/valley) Polyp color (green, brown, tan, yellow, olive, red) Different Corallite Shapes and Sizes Examples of Massive Stony Corals Montastraea Montastraea Suleimán © W.Harrigan © faveolata cavernosa S. © Diploria strigosa Porites astreoides © M. White© Montastraea faveolata MFAV Small, round polyps Form very large mounds, plates or crusts (to 4-5 m /12-15 ft) © S. ThorntonS. © Montastraea faveolata MFAV Surfaces smooth, ridged, or with bumps aligned in vertical rows © W. Harrigan © M. Weber © R. Steneck Montastraea faveolata MFAV Colonies are flattened, massive- plates with smooth surfaces under conditions of low light. Montastrea annularis MANN How similar to M. faveolata Small polyps Smooth surface How different Colonies are subdivided into numerous mounds or columns with live polyps at their summits. Plates at colony bases under low light conditions. (to 3-4 m/9-12 ft) Which is which? M. annularis M. faveolata MANN MFAV Montastrea franksi MFRA How similar to M. faveolata Small polyps and bumps Close-up How different Some polyps in bumps are larger, irregularly shaped, and may lack zooxanthellae. More aggressive spatial competitor. © P. Humann Montastrea franksi MFRA How similar to M. faveolata Form mounds, short columns, crusts, and/or plates. How different Bumps are scattered over colony surface. (to 3-4 m/9-12 ft) Montastrea franksi MFRA Flattened, massive plate morphology in low light conditions. Solenastrea bournoni SBOU How similar to M. annularis Small round polyps Mounds How different Lighter colors in life, Walls of some polyps are more distinct (“outies”) Bumpy colony surface (to ~1/2 m/<20 in) Solenastrea hyades SHYA How similar to S.
    [Show full text]
  • EXTENDED COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS of PRESENT and FUTURE USE of INDONESIAN CORAL REEFS an Empirical Approach to Sustainable Management of Tropical Marine Resources
    Aus dem Institut für Agrarökonomie der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel EXTENDED COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF PRESENT AND FUTURE USE OF INDONESIAN CORAL REEFS An Empirical Approach to Sustainable Management of Tropical Marine Resources Dissertation zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades der Agrar-und Ernährungswissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel vorgelegt von Magister of Science Achmad Fahrudin aus Jakarta (Indonesien) Kiel, November 2003 Dekan : Prof. Dr. Friedhelm Taube Erster Berichterstatter : Prof. Dr. Christian Noell Zweiter Berichterstatter : Prof. Dr. Franciscus Colijn Tag der mündlichen Prüfung: 06.11.2003 i Gedruckt mit Genehmigung der Agrar- und Ernährungswissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel ii Zusammenfassung Korallen stellen einen wichtigen Faktor der indonesischen Wirtschaft dar. Im Vergleich zu anderen Ländern weisen die Korallenriffe Indonesiens die höchsten Schädigungen auf. Das zerstörende Fischen ist ein Hauptgrund für die Degradation der Korallenriffe in Indonesien, so dass das Gesamtsystem dieser Fangpraxis analysiert werden muss. Dazu wurden im Rahmen dieser Studie die Standortbedingungen der Korallen erfasst, die Hauptnutzungen mit ihren jeweiligen Auswirkungen und typischen Merkmale der Nutzungen bestimmt sowie die politische Haltung der gegenwärtigen Regierung gegenüber diesem Problemfeld untersucht. Die Feldarbeit wurde in der Zeit von März 2001 bis März 2002 an den Korallenstandorten Seribu Islands (Jakarta), Menjangan Island (Bali) und Gili Islands
    [Show full text]
  • Guide to the Identification of Precious and Semi-Precious Corals in Commercial Trade
    'l'llA FFIC YvALE ,.._,..---...- guide to the identification of precious and semi-precious corals in commercial trade Ernest W.T. Cooper, Susan J. Torntore, Angela S.M. Leung, Tanya Shadbolt and Carolyn Dawe September 2011 © 2011 World Wildlife Fund and TRAFFIC. All rights reserved. ISBN 978-0-9693730-3-2 Reproduction and distribution for resale by any means photographic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or information storage and retrieval systems of any parts of this book, illustrations or texts is prohibited without prior written consent from World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Reproduction for CITES enforcement or educational and other non-commercial purposes by CITES Authorities and the CITES Secretariat is authorized without prior written permission, provided the source is fully acknowledged. Any reproduction, in full or in part, of this publication must credit WWF and TRAFFIC North America. The views of the authors expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the TRAFFIC network, WWF, or the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The designation of geographical entities in this publication and the presentation of the material do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of WWF, TRAFFIC, or IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The TRAFFIC symbol copyright and Registered Trademark ownership are held by WWF. TRAFFIC is a joint program of WWF and IUCN. Suggested citation: Cooper, E.W.T., Torntore, S.J., Leung, A.S.M, Shadbolt, T. and Dawe, C.
    [Show full text]
  • Feasibility Study for the Resettlement of the British Indian Ocean Territory
    Feasibility Study for the Resettlement of the British Indian Ocean Territory Draft Report 13th November 2014 CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 4 1.1 The British Indian Ocean Territory 4 1.2 Aims and overview of this study 5 1.3 Structure of this draft report 6 2 STUDY APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY 7 2.1 Guiding principles 7 2.2 Analytical framework 8 2.3 Key phases of activity 11 3 KEY ACTIVITIES AND RESETTLEMENT OPTIONS 13 3.1 Field visit to the British Indian Ocean Territory 13 3.2 Consultations and survey results 15 3.3 Overview of resettlement options 18 4 LEGAL AND POLITICAL ANALYSIS 20 4.1 Introduction and overview 20 4.2 Constitutional and governance framework 22 4.3 Treaty arrangements between the US and the UK 31 4.4 Environmental protection laws and conventions 32 4.5 Conclusions and implications for resettlement 35 5 ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS 38 5.1 Introduction and overview 38 5.2 Assessment of key environmental issues 38 5.3 Evaluation of potential resettlement locations 48 5.4 Summary environmental comparison of resettlement options 55 6 INFRASTRUCTURE ANALYSIS 58 6.1 Introduction and overview 58 6.2 Assessment of key infrastructure issues 59 6.3 Summary of implications for resettlement 66 7 ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL ANALYSIS 68 7.1 Introduction and overview 68 7.2 Data sources 68 7.3 Indicative cost estimates 68 8 COMPARISON OF RESETTLEMENT OPTIONS 74 8.1 Choice of resettlement location 74 8.2 Environmental considerations 76 8.3 Comparative costs of resettlement options 79 ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS BIOT British Indian Ocean
    [Show full text]
  • CORAL REEF DEGRADATION in the INDIAN OCEAN Status Report 2005
    Coral Reef Degradation in the Indian Ocean Status Report 2005 Coral Reef Degradation in the Indian Ocean. The coastal ecosystem of the Indian Ocean includes environments such as mangroves, sea- Program Coordination grass beds and coral reefs. These habitats are some CORDIO Secretariat Coral Reef Degradation of the most productive and diverse environments Olof Lindén on the planet. They form an essential link in the David Souter Department of Biology and Environmental food webs that leads to fish and other seafood in the Indian Ocean Science providing food security to the local human University of Kalmar population. In addition coral reefs and mangrove 29 82 Kalmar, Sweden Status Report 2005 forests protect the coastal areas against erosion. (e-mail: [email protected], Unfortunately, due to a number of human activi- [email protected]) Editors: DAVID SOUTER & OLOF LINDÉN ties, these valuable environments are now being degraded at an alarming rate. The use of destruc- CORDIO East Africa Coordination Center David Obura tive fishing techniques on reefs, coral mining and P.O. Box 035 pollution are examples of some of these stresses Bamburi, Mombasa, Kenya from local sources on the coral reefs. Climate (e-mail: [email protected], change is another stress factor which is causing [email protected]) additional destruction of the reefs. CORDIO is a collaborative research and CORDIO South Asia Coordination Center development program involving expert groups in Dan Wilhelmsson (to 2004) Status Report 2005 countries of the Indian Ocean. The focus of Jerker Tamelander (from 2005) IUCN (World Conservation Union) CORDIO is to mitigate the widespread degrada- 53 Horton Place, Colombo 7, Sri Lanka tion of the coral reefs and other coastal eco- (e-mail: [email protected]) systems by supporting research, providing knowledge, creating awareness, and assist in CORDIO Indian Ocean Islands developing alternative livelihoods.
    [Show full text]
  • Resurrecting a Subgenus to Genus: Molecular Phylogeny of Euphyllia and Fimbriaphyllia (Order Scleractinia; Family Euphylliidae; Clade V)
    Resurrecting a subgenus to genus: molecular phylogeny of Euphyllia and Fimbriaphyllia (order Scleractinia; family Euphylliidae; clade V) Katrina S. Luzon1,2,3,*, Mei-Fang Lin4,5,6,*, Ma. Carmen A. Ablan Lagman1,7, Wilfredo Roehl Y. Licuanan1,2,3 and Chaolun Allen Chen4,8,9,* 1 Biology Department, De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines 2 Shields Ocean Research (SHORE) Center, De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines 3 The Marine Science Institute, University of the Philippines, Quezon City, Philippines 4 Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan 5 Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia 6 Evolutionary Neurobiology Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Okinawa, Japan 7 Center for Natural Sciences and Environmental Research (CENSER), De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines 8 Taiwan International Graduate Program-Biodiversity, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan 9 Institute of Oceanography, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan * These authors contributed equally to this work. ABSTRACT Background. The corallum is crucial in building coral reefs and in diagnosing systematic relationships in the order Scleractinia. However, molecular phylogenetic analyses revealed a paraphyly in a majority of traditional families and genera among Scleractinia showing that other biological attributes of the coral, such as polyp morphology and reproductive traits, are underutilized. Among scleractinian genera, the Euphyllia, with nine nominal species in the Indo-Pacific region, is one of the groups Submitted 30 May 2017 that await phylogenetic resolution. Multiple genetic markers were used to construct Accepted 31 October 2017 Published 4 December 2017 the phylogeny of six Euphyllia species, namely E. ancora, E. divisa, E.
    [Show full text]